


Mirrored and Crossed

by Tell_Me_Tales



Series: Stuff I'll Never Finish ...Oops [6]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: 'cause I'm lazy as they come, ...and I'm still not likely to do anything more with this, Abandoned Work - Unfinished and Discontinued, Dimension Travel, Dimensional Portal, F/M, I've got something of a plot planned out, Mirror of Erised, Post-Half-Blood Prince AU
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-08-17
Updated: 2016-08-17
Packaged: 2018-08-09 04:10:34
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,215
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7786264
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tell_Me_Tales/pseuds/Tell_Me_Tales
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After the "Mudblood" Incident, Lily not only ceases to be Snape's friend but becomes his most effective tormentor. When the last day of school for the year rolls around, and still nothing has improved between the two, Severus makes a decision. His body is found at the bottom of the astronomy tower and Lily is horrified.</p><p>Years later, the Mirror of Erised proves itself to be... Well, more than meets the eye, that's for certain. In true gryffindor fashion, Lily does not hesitate to grab hold of her second chance.</p><p><b>Fair Warning:</b> This isn't likely to get past the (prologue and) first two chapters. Not because I don't know where I want to take this (because I do have <i>some</i> idea) but because I'm too lazy to write it all out and I've got too many story ideas to even try making them all a reality. Sorry. But I wrote this little bit, so may as well share it. Enjoy.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

****She'd been escaping to the abandoned classroom since the beginning of her sixth year at Hogwarts, so she knew immediately upon her entry that something was different. She couldn't place what, precisely, was wrong; but she knew that _something_ wasn't right. Still, she didn't turn back and leave. Perhaps she should have, but she was a gryffindor and retreat had never been in her nature.

Lily slowly approached the sole object of interest in the dusty room: the Mirror of Erised.

"Hello, Severus," she greeted the reflection quietly, as always. And, as always, she took a moment just to drink in the sight of the man in the enchanted looking-glass. Lily allowed herself to be captivated, not for the first time, by the way Severus seemed to grow and age with her, day-by-day and year-by-year. In her eyes, it was nothing short of amazing.

The redhead frowned as she noticed the dark crescents under his eyes, sloped shoulders, and bloodless lips. While Severus Snape had never really taken care of himself (much less his appearance) and it was a rare sight to see him smile -- even in the Mirror of Erised -- she had never seen him so thoroughly... _defeated_. He looked dead on his feet. He looked like he had given up. And that thought scared her more than anything.

"Sev, are you alright?" It was silly to ask, of course; both because it was clear that he wasn't, and because he couldn't possibly hear her to begin with.

So it was quite a shock to see her name form soundlessly on his lips just before he crumpled to the floor in front of her.

Lily couldn't help it, she instantly fell into a panic. "Severus!"


	2. Cracks in Reality

****Panic has never been something Lily manages well, and this time is no exception.

"Severus! Severus, look at me, please!"

Pleading won't do anything, of course, but she isn't exactly thinking clearly either.

"Severus!" Two fisted hands strike the mirror's surface, twice. The cool glass remains unchanged. "Sev, please! Just look at me!"

Green eyes search franticly; for what, their owner is unsure. "Sev, I'm right here. Please."

The figure in the mirror trembles, shoulders shaking, and some of Lily's desperation falls away as she realizes what she is seeing. "Oh, Sev... I'm so sorry."

She hasn't seen him like this since they were young -- so very young, a lifetime ago it seems -- but the fact remains, Severus Snape is crying.

"I'm here, Sev," Lily promises, even as she finally remembers he won't hear her -- that he isn't even real, just a false reflection. "I'm here. You're not alone."

* * *

Lily can't be sure how much time has passed when she wakes from her doze, only that she has a crick in her neck and stiff muscles from resting on the cold, stone floor of the castle for so long.

She looks up to find Severus still sitting on the other side of the mirror, staring at her. Lily notes absently that she must have been asleep for a while, judging by the fact that the only thing to give away Severus's earlier breakdown is his bloodshot eyes. Though even that is easy to miss, considering how miserable he looks in general at the moment.

"Hey," she manages with a sad smile.

Lily watches as he says her name again -- she wishes she could hear it -- and touches his fingertips to the mirror.

"I miss you, too," she says as she leans forward and places her hand opposite his. Two pairs of eyes widen when her fingers touch his instead of the unfeeling glass they should have.

Her mouth forms a small 'o' before she glances back up at Severus. He stares at her for a moment before his brow furrows and he gives an experimental push. Nothing. Severus's lips thin and he shakes his head.

Lily doesn't even think when she sees him preparing to leave, just acts. They're both surprised when her hand falls through the mirror. The redhead yelps loudly as she instinctively draws her hand back. She inspects it carefully before returning her attention to the man in the mirror. Her name is a question when he says it this time.

The witch frowns and gets to her feet. She places both her hands on the mirror and pushes again. This time the glass is unyielding. Lily glances at her counterpart again. "Help me?" she asks, a shy smile stealing over her features. She's still fairly sure that he can't hear her any more than she can hear him, but that doesn't mean he won't understand her.

Severus approaches the Mirror of Erised cautiously, but come to her aid he does, so Lily isn't about to complain. As soon as his hands touch hers, Lily finds herself falling forward. She gets stuck about halfway up her forearm, and the stop is nothing short of jarring. Still, there's no denying that she is indeed crossing over to the mirror's other side (even if only a bit at a time) and she can't stop the grin that overtakes her features.

The first crack appears just before they manage to get Lily's elbows through. It startles both of them; but what startles Lily more than the sight of her portal's threatening collapse, is her partner's immediate reaction.

Severus begins pushing her back through the mirror. And that just won't do.

Lily manages to grab the man's cloak and gives it a sharp tug to regain his attention. She makes sure to speak her next three words _very_ clearly, "Don't. You. Dare."

Severus glances up at the new crack at the corner of the mirror, and she can tell he's about to argue with her, so she glares harder at him. "No," she tells him bluntly, "Help me through."

Severus begins to work double-time.

They quickly work their way up to her shoulders -- and start two additional crack in the mirror, but Lily prefers to not think about that -- when Severus suddenly abandons pulling her arms through and places his hands on the mirror in front of her face.

It takes Lily an embarrassing four seconds before she realizes his intentions. He always had been the one to spot future troubles, out of the two of them. She was hopeless at it, all enthusiasm and no planning ahead. Lily would like to blame it all on being Sorted into Gryffindor, but the fact is she has always been that way and likely always will be.

Lily allows her head to fall forward, her cheeks flushed red. She feels Severus's fingers brush against her forehead and then down the sides of her face. His hands come back up to slide over her hair and then brush the backs of her ears.

"Can you hear me now?"

Lily opens her eyes in surprise, not even certain when she had closed them, and stares. She can't help it really. While she remembers how his voice had sounded after all the awkward cracks and squeaks of puberty had finally settled, she had been fairly sure it hadn't been _that_ low, and certainly not so polished. Still, there is no denying that it is _Sev_.

"Best thing I've heard in a long time," she replies. She even manages a cheeky grin, but he's not really focused on her; all his attention is on the job at hand. One crack in the mirror edges its way a little too close for Severus's tastes and he spends the next few moments gently guiding her away from it.

"This has to be one of the single most reckless things you have ever done," he admonitions.

Lily pouts. It is apparently more accurate to say that _most_ of his attention is dedicated to getting her through. She had nearly forgotten that Severus Snape always had the concentration to spare on telling her off for being a 'Foolish Gryffindor.' Yes, somewhere along the line the title had gained capital-letter status.

Severus runs his hands over the back of her head and neck begins work on her shoulders again.

"An untested -- and obviously unstable -- portal begins to not just close, but disintegrate around you, and what do you do? Return to safety and remain unharmed? Of course not!" Severus huffs and steps back to look at their progress so far. "Merlin forbid you take the time to think an adventure through. Someone might think you're not gryffindor enough!"

"Gee, Sev, glad to see you too!" the redhead shoots back and crosses her arms. "I suppose next you'll tell me how stupid I am to--" Lily cuts herself off before she can say anything else. She'd said too many hurtful things already. (When will she learn?) She certainly doesn't need to add to them. The witch sighs. "I don't want to fight. There's been too much of that between us. Please, Sev, just help me through...please?"

The wizard doesn't say anything, but nods and steps back in front of the mirror again.

"Do you think you can press yourself flat against the mirror on your side?" he asks less than a minute later.

"Yes."

"Good. Do it," he orders and continues to instruct her, "Put your arms around my neck, and let's see if I can't pull you through before the entire mirror shatters around you."

"Well, haven't you just gone and turned into a ray of sunshine behind my back," Lily says, sarcasm heavy in her voice. But there's no real bite behind her words and Sev will know that.

Severus hums noncommittally and adds to her comment in a dry tone, "The kind found only during droughts and heat-waves."

"God, Severus," she giggles the words more than she says them, "I've missed you, you know."

There's silence for a moment, and then... "I've missed you too."


	3. Alice

It's the cold that wakes her. While her right side is warm enough, her left is like ice; and she has no idea when her mattress became so hard.

Bleary green eyes creep open just enough to see the morning sun streaming in through dirty windows. It highlights the dancing dustmotes in the air and reflects off of the broken glass scattered on the floor. ' _It's too early for this_ ,' Lily thinks, caught in that half-waking, half-sleeping point of consciousness.

She turns over with every intention of falling back into blissful slumber, but the thought doesn't survive the action when she finds herself face-to-face with a sleeping Severus Snape.

Lily freezes, every muscle in her body tensing as her mind runs wild in its search for an answer.

' _It's not real. He's DEAD! IT'S NOT REAL!_ ' She's panicking. She knows she is, but it's not an easy thing to stop doing once you start. Remaining as still as she can manage while gasping in desperate breathes, Lily starts going through all the possibilities she can think of. _'Not dreaming: would have woken up by now. Not a bogart: he's not screaming at me. Can't be dementors: this isn't a memory, and I'm not cold enough. That second bit rules out him being any kind of ghost. Come on, Lily. Think! What the hell happened last night?_ '

The man next to her cuts her frantic thoughts short. Lily pulls in a sharp breath when black eyes open lazily before her and a soft groan reaches her ears.

Severus blinks once, twice, three times and then furrows his brow as a frown takes over his face. "I've finally gone round the bend, haven't I?" he asks in a soft voice, but it sounds more like resignation than a question.

"Uh..." Lily manages.

"It could be worse," Severus decides out loud, levering himself into a sitting position, "I was almost sure I would end up seeing Dumbledore after..." He shakes his head and doesn't finish the sentence.

Lily will later wish she had paid more attention to what Severus had said in this moment, but for now she is far too distracted by the fact that he (and in that instant realizes that she herself) is naked. And she suddenly remembers what happened last night very well. What had started as a hysterical, relief-driven kiss after the mirror shattered and she had been pulled through unharmed (relatively, anyway. She has a nasty gash or two running down her right leg.) had soon turned into far more.

"Alice," Severus says, breaking the silence that had fallen over them.

"What?" Lily asks, mind blank with something that might be either shock or panic. She can't quite tell. Maybe it's both.

"That's what I'll call you: Alice." He isn't even looking at her as he says it, staring off into the middle-distance instead.

Lily has found that irritation is a surprisingly good way to break any stupor, and it doesn't fail her this time. "Sev," she waits until she is sure she has his attention before she continues, "You don't get to name me like some pet. My name is Lily."

He stares at her for a long enough time that she starts to fidget in discomfort, but he speaks just as she comes to the decision to say more.

"You're not real. Lily has been dead for fifteen years now. _You_ are nothing but a figment created by a mind gone mad. I've decided your name is Alice."


End file.
